Reading: We are working on thinking before, during and after we read books. We have worked on making predictions and asking questions. We have started to leave thinking marks in our books using post its- we write down any thoughts or questions we have as we read. Prompt your child to ask questions while they read. You can model this in your own reading aloud too. The students are doing an excellent job thinking about books!
Writing: Did you know that your child is now a published author? We had our very first Author's Celebration! It was a success. Each student chose their favorite Small Moment story to edit, revise and publish. Then last Tuesday, we celebrated our hard work by sharing our stories and having a toast at the end. Everyone's story in now prominently displayed in our classroom library! Look for your child's story drafts from the first 2 months in their folders today. This month we are now focusing on what makes a good story: ideas, organization, word choice, voice, sentence fluency and conventions. We are currently working on Organization: writing strong beginnings, middles and ends.
Spelling: Quarter 1 has concluded. The spelling lists sent home for the rest of the year will still have the 5 high frequency words, but now only a list of connecting words for the spelling pattern. This means that the list I send home will not have any of the spelling pattern words your child will have on the Friday test. Rather, the list will have connecting words-words that have a specific pattern that can be learned and transferred to new words. The reason the list is changing is to promote a deeper understanding of the spelling pattern rather than memorizing a list and not being able to transfer the knowledge.
I introduced the kids to a website called Spelling City (spellingcity.com). It is a great site where kids can enter their spelling words and then practice through games or computer tests. Try it out at home sometime. The website also has a link under Educational Links to the right.
Math: We took our Unit 3 Math Assessment yesterday- just in time for report cards! The kids are doing well. We are now learning. As you have noticed, I had had to assign homework on a Friday, always making the link due Tuesday in case your family would like the weekend homework free. The reason I have to do this is because of the Everyday Math timeline. For scheduling purposes, we may have to do a math lesson instead of math games on Fridays. When that is the case, there is a home link that supports the lesson so I do have to assign it on Friday. Thank you for your understanding and support continued support at home!
Science: We will be finishing our unit on Balance and Motion early next week. It has been a fun and exciting unit. Our final experiments involved motion. We built and observed different wheels on axels and cups rolling down a ramp. Our final experiment involves building a roller coaster using the knowledge gained throughout the unit about motion. Ask your child what type of wheels roll straight and which type turn. We will take a break from science until after winter break, as we study Mapping in Social Studies.
Have an absolutely wonderful weekend!
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